Széchenyi Thermal Bath

What to expect

Széchenyi is the bath on the postcards: a long yellow neo-baroque building in Budapest’s City Park (Városliget), with three large outdoor pools in the courtyard and steam rising off them on winter mornings. It opened on June 16, 1913, to a design by Győző Czigler, and an expansion in 1927 gave it the shape it has now. It is run, like Lukács, Rudas and Pesterzsébet, by the city company Budapest Gyógyfürdői (Budapest Spas).

The courtyard is the reason most people come. The middle pool is a 50 m lap pool. On either side are the outdoor thermal pool, the warmest one outside, and a leisure pool with jets and a whirlpool ring. Inside, a maze of tiled halls holds the medicinal pools, saunas and steam rooms. The indoor section is less photographed and often quieter.

It is busy. Expect tour groups, couples on a first trip to Budapest and a steady line of regulars playing chess in the outdoor thermal pool. Nobody under 14 is admitted, so it is an adult crowd.

The pools

The operator lists these temperatures:

• Outdoor thermal pool: 97-100°F36-38°C, 1.4 m deep. The one to head for in winter.
• Outdoor leisure pool: 90-93°F32-34°C, 1.2 m deep, with jets and a current ring.
• Outdoor swimming pool: 79-82°F26-28°C, 50 m long, 1.4-1.7 m deep. Swim cap compulsory.
• Indoor medicinal pools: 82-104°F28-40°C, 1.0-1.3 m deep. The bath suggests 20 minutes at a time.
• Plunge pools: 64°F18°C and 104°F40°C, next to the saunas.

The water comes from two deep wells. The first, drilled by Vilmos Zsigmondy between 1865 and 1875, reaches about 975 m; the second, found in 1938, reaches 1,256 m. They deliver water at 165°F and 171°F74°C and 77°C, which is cooled for the pools. It carries sulphate, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate and fluoride.

Getting there

Széchenyi is at Állatkerti körút 9-11 in the 14th district, at the north end of City Park.

• M1 metro (the Millennium Underground) from Vörösmarty tér or along Andrássy út to Széchenyi fürdő station, which comes up beside the bath. This is the route the bath recommends.
• Trolleybus 72 stops nearby.

Walk-up tickets are sold at the entrance opposite the Circus, and the self-service machines take only bank cards. Cash is accepted only at some staffed ticket offices. Euros are not accepted. Parking around City Park is limited, so leave the car at your hotel.

When to go

Winter is the best season for the outdoor pools: cold air, hot water and a lot of steam. Summer afternoons are crowded and the outdoor thermal pool can feel too warm in the sun.

Arrive early on a weekday. The Good Morning Budapest ticket (Monday to Friday, bought on site between 7 and 9 a.m., entry by 9 a.m.) is the cheapest way in and lets you stay all day. Weekends and Fridays cost more. Peak pricing applies from December 18, 2026 to January 6, 2027, when the bath opens at 8 a.m. On October 23, 2026, a national holiday, it opens at 8 a.m.

Saturday evenings belong to the Sparty, so the bath closes to day visitors at 8 p.m. as usual and reopens for the party.

Prices and booking

Budapest Spas published these 2026 prices:

• Daily ticket with locker: HUF 13,200 Monday to Thursday, HUF 14,800 Friday to Sunday, HUF 15,800 on holidays and peak days.
• Good Morning Budapest (entry before 9 a.m.): HUF 10,500 Monday to Thursday, HUF 11,800 on Fridays.
• Fast Track with locker (online only): HUF 15,200 / 16,800 / 17,800. Morning slots must enter by 11 a.m.; afternoon slots after 3 p.m.
• Cabin: HUF 1,000 extra.

A daily ticket allows one entry. Online and on-site prices are the same, and online tickets cannot be changed or refunded. You exchange your QR code for a wristband or watch that opens your locker or cabin. The Budapest Card gives 20% off a standard locker ticket on site.

Cabin or locker? The locker is small, about backpack size. The cabin is a private changing room for a day’s luggage, and a couple can share one.

Nothing is rented. Bring a towel, slippers (compulsory) and a swimsuit made for swimming. You may bring food from outside, but not alcohol.

Sparty

The Sparty is a separate night event run through spartybooking.com every Saturday from February to December. It runs from 9:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. with last entry at 1 a.m. Guests must be 18 or over, and only the two outdoor pools are open. In autumn 2026 the ticket tiers started at EUR 59 and went up to EUR 143 for express entry with an open VIP bar. Swimsuits and slippers are required, nudity is not allowed, and you cannot bring your own drinks or glass. Extra Sparty Special nights run in August and December.

Bathing culture

Shower before you get in. Swimsuits are worn in all the pools and most saunas, and a swim cap is needed only in the lap pool. The bath also has a naturist sauna area, where cameras and phones are banned outright and the house rules ask for discreet behaviour. Children under 14 may not use any sauna. In saunas, sit on a dry towel or sheet, do not pour anything on the stove and leave the room if a sauna master’s ticketed session is starting. Keep your voice down in the indoor medicinal pools, where many people are on a prescribed cure.

Where to stay nearby

There is no lodging at the bath. The 6th and 7th districts around Andrássy út are a few metro stops away and have hotels at every price. For a bath crawl, Lukács on the Buda bank is quieter and cheaper, Rudas has the Ottoman dome, and Pesterzsébet in the south of the city is the family-friendly option. Dandár in the 9th district is the small neighbourhood bath of the group, and Veli Bej is a second Ottoman bath on the Buda side. Gellért has been closed for renovation since October 1, 2025.

Safety notes

• Heat: The 104°F40°C pools are hot enough to make you light-headed. Keep to 15 or 20 minutes, drink water and stand up slowly.
• Health: Hungarian spas advise people with heart disease, high blood pressure or a pregnancy to check with a doctor before using hot medicinal pools.
• Theft: Use the locker or a paid safe for passports and phones, and keep the wristband on.
• Leave on time: Pool areas must be empty 20 minutes before closing, and ticket sales stop an hour before.